EID Parry, the Murugappa Group firm, today signed an agreement with Cochin-based Synthite Industries to set up a 50:50 joint venture firm for manufacturing value-added algae products.

EID Parry, the Murugappa Group firm, today signed an agreement with Cochin-based Synthite Industries to set up a 50:50 joint venture firm for manufacturing value-added algae products.

"The JV firm will set up a manufacturing facility in Tamil Nadu with an investment of around Rs 40 crore for the production of Phycocyanin, a natural blue pigment extracted from Spirulina," the company said in a regulatory filing.

The EID Parry will invest Rs 11 crore in the JV firm, which will leverage on Parry Nutra's Spirulina cultivation strengths and Synthite's extraction capabilities making it a good strategic fit for both the partners, it said.

The company's Parry Nutraceuticals division is a pioneer in the production of microalgae-based products. Its flagship product Spirulina is an established nutritional health supplement, the company said in the statement.

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"To start with, we will be focusing on extracting Phycocyanin from Spirulina. In due course, we will be looking at other avenues within the microalgae segment thereby building the business to a company with a diversified value- added Algae portfolio," Muthu Murugappan, Business Head of Parry Nutraceuticals, said.

"Our partnership will offer our customers a high quality, sustainable, supply of Phycocyanin blue. Our leading edge technology will allow us to qualify our product as a natural 'Colouring Food' for European markets and as a certified Organic product for the US market," Synthite Industries Director Aju Jacob said.

The company will also explore emerging opportunities in Algae extracts for the global health and wellness industry, he added.